When was the first air rifle invented?

When was the first air rifle invented?

One of the first commercially successful and mass-produced air guns was manufactured by the William F. Markham’s Markham Air Rifle Company in Plymouth, Michigan, US. Their first model air gun was the wooden Challenger, marketed in 1886.

What was the first air rifle?

Girandoni air rifle
The Girandoni air rifle was an air gun designed by Italian inventor Bartolomeo Girardoni circa 1779. The weapon was also known as the Windbüchse (“wind rifle” in German)….Girardoni air rifle.

Girandoni air rifle
Used by Austrian Empire United States (Lewis and Clark)
Production history
Designer Bartolomeo, Girandoni
Designed 1779 or 1780

What kind of weapons did Lewis and Clark use?

All the firearms of the Lewis and Clark expedition were single-shot, muzzle loading, black powder guns with flintlock ignition, the notable exception being Lewis’s air gun, which on several occasions astonished native Indians with its repeating operation.

What was the first air gun in history?

On the contrary, the air guns of the 18th century AD, such as the famous Girandoni rifle, could shoot up to twenty shots a minute. The latter has been considered by some specialists in the subject as the first PCP or pre-compressed air rifle in history.

Who was the inventor of the compressed air rifle?

The compressed air rifle has huge advantages over the traditional firearm. It was invented by the Italian gunsmith Girandoni Bartolomeo in 1780 for the Austrian army, in the context of the Napoleonic wars between France and Austria. The name for this Austrian model in German was Windbüchse, in other words, wind rifle.

Who was the inventor of the Girandoni air rifle?

But around 1780 an enterprising Tyrolean gunsmith named Bartolomeo Girandoni developed a rugged new model air rifle that was soon adopted by the Austrian military. Produced in .46-caliber, the Girandoni was a quantum leap forward in weapons technology.

Who was the manufacturer of the Benjamin air rifle?

In the 1880s, Wissler Instrument Company began manufacturing the Benjamin pump guns. By 1899, Walter Benjamin manufactured the guns under his own company, the St. Louis Air Rifle Company. The guns were unreliable and broke easily, and the company went defunct.